A SHORT CHEMOENZYMATIC ROUTE TO GLYCOSPHINGOLIPIDS USING SOLUBLE GLYCOSYL TRANSFERASES

Two commercially available soluble glycosyl transferases, a beta-1,4-g alactosyl transferase from bovine milk and an alpha-2,6-sialyl transfe rase from rat liver, were used for the synthesis of several glycosphin golipids. The synthetic strategy involves the chemical synthesis of 2- azido- and 2-amino-sphingosine glycosides (5, 6, 10 and 11) and furthe r glycosylation of their sugar headgroups to complex glycolipids. The azido- or amino-sphingosine lipid sidechain can then be further elabor ated by reduction and/or acylation.